Study: What social media will do to our brains by 2020

This isn’t science fiction, but a prediction of how social media is affecting the way teens and 20-somethings consume information.

According to a study from Elon University and Pew Internet, more than 1,000 technology stakeholders and critics say that by 2020 young people will be “less likely to undertake deep, critical analysis of issues and challenging information.”

Or, as Danah Boyd of Microsoft Research, put it:

“Some [survey respondents] said they are already witnessing deficiencies in young people’s abilities to focus their attention, be patient and think deeply. Some experts expressed concerns that trends are leading to a future in which most people become shallow consumers of information, endangering society.”

It’s not all bad, though. Boyd also noted that social media and new technologies give young people “incredible opportunities to connect, create and collaborate.” Ultimately, most survey respondents said this is a positive thing.